An infestation by parasites constitutes a great danger in agricultural stock keeping for breeding operations. Various types of helminths endanger different types of animals such as cattle, horses, swine, sheep and poultry. The endangering of livestock is independent of the type of keeping. Particular problems in the area of parasitoses by worms are presented in the following using the example of swine breeding. At the same time, these problems are suitable for illustrating the purpose of the present invention.
Of all the heimirth types, Ascaris suum (swine maw-worm) represents the most persistent potential of endangerment for swine stock. The cause for this is a so-called xe2x80x9cdirect development cyclexe2x80x9d of this species.
The sexually mature Ascaris suum females deposit up to 106 eggs per day in the intestine of the swine that are excreted with the excrement. The infectious larvae develop in the eggs within 6-8 weeks. If these eggs containing the larvae are ingested by the swine (from the soil, wall, and skin of the adjacent animals), the larvae will hatch in the small intestine. The larvae penetrate the intestinal wall, bore through the liver and pass via the blood to the lungs. After having broken through the lung tissue, the larvae are located in the air passageways of the lungs. The larvae are swallowed with the coughed-up mucous, pass into the small intestine and become adult worms. Bleeding and swellings of the swine liver are produced as a reaction to the migration of the larvae (cause of the xe2x80x9cmilk spotsxe2x80x9d) and at the same time there is a significant interference with the metabolic efficiency. During the inspection of the meat, the liver is rejected given the presence of milk spots since it can no longer be used as foodstuff.
The cycle of infection can be interrupted in breeding operations for a brief time by the administration of anthelmintics [vermifuges] on the one hand and on the other hand by the use of special disinfection agents with ascaricidic action.
The anthelmintics administered usually effect only a reliable killing of the adult forms (worms and larvae) in the body of the animal and the disinfection agents kill off the maw-worm eggs on stall bottoms, walls and other surfaces in contact with the animals.
However, the cycle of excretion and re-infection begins again after only a brief time.
This is on account of the extremely adhesive surface, due to evolution, of the worm eggs that as a consequence adhere very firmly to the bristles, skin, teats and claws of the animals. The enormous adhesive capacity of the eggs is characteristic for very different helminth types. It is assumed that the ability to adhere to surfaces is the epidemiologically most significant method of propagation of maw-worm types.
The newly-born piglets become re-infected by licking each other and searching for the teats and the cycle of development starts anew.
Thus, the skin and bristles of contaminated animals are part of the causative-agent reservoir and constitute an important segment of the viscous circle of excretion, contamination and re-infection.
According to the previous state of the art, no washing or disinfecting agent is known that would be suitable for either removing the adhesive helminth eggs from the skin of the animals or killing the eggs.
Sufficiently efficacious disinfecting agents cannot be used without danger on the animal on account of their composition. No cleaning agent [detergent] that transports the worm eggs onto the stall bottom by washing them off, where a disinfection would then be possible, is known.
It was surprisingly found that a combination of certain anionic and non-anionic surfactants in the presence of aromatic acids, glycol ethers and an oxygen donor causes the helminth eggs to completely lose their adhesive capacity in a very brief time period upon contact with these agents. The components of the agents are considered to be non-toxic or have a low toxicity so that no danger to the animals is present when they are used in the concentration intended for use. After the loss of their adhesive capacity the eggs can be removed by simply washing off the bristles, skin, coat and feathers with water, which can interrupt the last link in the chain of infection.
The present invention has as subject matter cleaning agents for external application on animals in order to free them from infectious, adhesively adhering helminth eggs in that the adhesive capacity of the eggs is eliminated [neutralized] by the agents.